Processes for fixing elements to supports, such as the processes of transfer printing by means of an etched block and a pad, have been known for a long time and give very good results when the indications to be reproduced are flat and thin, but these processes becomes [sic] more difficult to use when it is desired to obtain more substantial thicknesses. Other techniques such as insertion or adhesive coating have hitherto enabled three-dimensional indications to be fixed by placing them individually.
Other processes exist in which the indications to be affixed, for example to a dial, are produced by cutting a sheet consisting of a compound possibly containing luminescent material, the indications obtained having a flat shape. However, this process, on the one hand, does not allow the production of indications of elaborate shape and, on the other hand, presupposes a manipulation carried out by an operator in order to place them on the support.